Saracens v Bristol: Teams
Saracens will hand South Africa centre Brad Barritt his full debut for the clash against Guinness Premiership strugglers Bristol.
Last Updated: 09/01/09 1:36pm
Saracens will hand South Africa centre Brad Barritt his full debut for the clash against Guinness Premiership strugglers Bristol.
The 22-year-old arrived at Vicarage Road from The Sharks in November, but was sidelined over the Christmas period with food poisoning.
And now Barritt, who replaces the injured Andy Farrell having come off the bench against Worcester, is relishing the chance to get his Sarries career off the ground.
He said: "I've had a few brief appearances as a replacement but it will be great to get out on the pitch and take the opportunity to show what I can do for the full 80 minutes.
"Everybody has been fantastic since I moved to the club and even the weather in the past few weeks has been a pleasant change from what I've been used to in Durban! I'm really excited about Sunday's game."
Noah Cato also comes into the backline, along with USA full-back Chris Wyles, while in the pack Cencus Johnston, Andy Saull and Ben Skirving all return.
Debut
Nathan Brew is set to make his debut for Bristol as the Premiership strugglers look to kick-start their season against Saracens.
Brew, who joined the club following his release from the Scarlets, joins England Sevens star Mat Turner and Vunga Lilo in a new-look back three.
Ed Barnes moves to the centres, while Adrian Jarvis is handed the No.10 jersey.
In the pack, Scott Linklater replaces the injured Mark Regan at hooker, while Nathan Budgett moves into the second row with skipper Matt Salter named in the back-row.
And Hill knows his side face an uphill task if they are to get a much-needed victory at Vicarage Road.
"They are a good side and it'll be tough to get something there. On current form, they are extremely strong. But we have to look at the performance as that's what has been lacking in recent weeks," said Hill.
"So, we're going to try some different things and, hopefully, that will be the catalyst to us producing a better performance."
Saracens: 15 Chris Wyles, 14 Richard Haughton, 13 Kevin Sorrell, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Noah Cato, 10 Glen Jackson, 9 Neil de Kock, 1 Matias Aguero, 2 Fabio Ongaro, 3 Cencus Johnston, 4 Steve Borthwick (capt), 5 Chris Jack, 6 Wikus van Heerden, 7 Andy Saull, 8 Ben Skirving.
Replacements: 16 Andy Kyriacou, 17 Nick Lloyd, 18 Cobus Visagie, 19 Hugh Vyvyan, 20 Moses Rauluni, 21 Gordon Ross, 22 Rodd Penney
Bristol: 15 Vunga Lilo, 14 Mat Turner, 13 Neil Brew, 12 Ed Barnes, 11 Nathan Brew, 10 Adrian Jarvis, 9 Shaun Perry, 1 Mark Irish, 2 Scott Linklater, 3 Darren Crompton, 4 Nathan Budgett, 5 Robert Sidoli, 6 Matt Salter (capt), 7 Alfie To'oala, 8 Dan Ward-Smith.
Replacements: 16 David Blaney, 17 Wayne Thompson, 18 Roy Winters, 19 James Phillips, 20 Graeme Beveridge, 21 Luke Eves, 22 Lee Robinson